The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "Customer Service Commitment" ...
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It's Not in the Mail: Bounce a check, and you might not write another for 5 years
The Wall Street Journal reports that some banks are using a database "to blacklist customers for even small slip-ups." The database, known as ChexSystems, is subscribed to by 80 percent of banks in the United States -- and once your name is placed on it, none of those banks will let you open a checking account. What's more, "once lodged in ChexSystems, you automatically stay there for five years, whether your offense was bouncing a check or two or committing serious fraud." As a result, an increasing number of people -- particularly the poor -- are finding themselves unable to write checks for years through any bank, even if the offense was only a one-time bouncing of a check. "Denied access to checking, a privilege most Americans take for granted, those stuck in ChexSystems are forced for five years to use expensive check-cashing services and to undergo the inconvenience of paying bills with money orders or cash. Customers often learn about having been placed in the database only when told be a bank explaining why an application for a new account has been rejected." Says one chief banking officer: "..if you are in the system, a checking account is not an option, regardless of why you are there." The Journal examines whether the punishment fits the crime, and looks at the toll on low-income areas.
Tags: banks; account; checking account; checking; checks; ChexSystems; financial; business; punishment; blacklist
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The Plane Truth
Dateline investigates chronic customer service complaints about the airline industry including flight delays, mishandled baggage and in-flight service. Dateline built its own database to track flights and then compare their information given out by the airlines about delayed flights; many times they were told that flights they knew were delayed were on time. They found that the airlines could be doing a lot more, but since they aren't being pressured to, they aren't.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; Customer Service Commitment; airlines; consumer complaints; delays; baggage handling; in-flight service; Federal Aviation Administration; FAA; air rage